jamie of all trades

from the mail bag: duck cupcake toppers

i received a request from reader kelly asking if i'd be willing to share how to make the ducks for the duck cupcakes.  my pleasure!

 

here's what you'll need:

fondant
food coloring - yellow + orange or red to mix and make orange
circle cookie cutter
brown pastels
rolling pin
wax paper

 

first, add a few drops of yellow food coloring to the fondant and knead together until well incorporated. repeat with the orange food coloring.  between two pieces of wax paper, roll out until the yellow fondant until 1/4 inch thick.  with the circle cookie cutter cut out as many circles as you need for the cupcakes.  set aside.

 

beaks: between two pieces of wax paper roll out orange fondant.  cut into 1/2 inch wide strips and then cut the stripes into small rectangle pieces.  then cut a small triangle out of each rectangle.  with a drop of water, wet the back of the beaks and attach on the yellow circles.  take the brown pastel sprinkles and arrange where you want the eyes.  press into the yellow fondant so they won't roll away.  place one duck on each cupcake!

 

 

from the mail bag: evian spray

another from the mail bag coming at cha today.  it's super hot in seattle, like abnormal hot.  i'm loving it but it is a little hot for sleeping.  apparently i'm not the only one thinking this. i did receive a pretty funny text and thought the mail bag extends to texts so i wanted to share.

•   dear joat, how do i make a misting tent in my living room? 

after i laughed out loud for a good few minutes i thought about what i would say to this reader.  i don't want to leave him hanging.  i couldn't come up with a misting tent in one night but here's a close second - evian spray. 

now after you get done laughing for a good few minutes, hear me out.  yeah, it's expensive and probably pretty silly, but it really cools you down.  it's great for those super hot days.  i even sleep with it right by my bed in case i wake up in the night and need a spritz.

keepin' it cool - xoxo joat

{image via}

from the mail bag: saving cards

a friend of mine who recently got married wrote me about ways to store all the cards she got for her wedding.

•  Do you have any creative ideas for what to do with the cards you receive for your wedding or any cards in general? I love to save cards that I get from people but they always end up in a bag somewhere and I would really like to find a way to display or preserve them. Any ideas? 

I've got a lot of cards around my house and i'm always looking for ways to display them without calling too much attention or taking up space are.  try stack the cards together and tie with a ribbon.  Use some leftover ribbon from your wedding or find a fun ribbon in your favorite color and tie together like you're wrapping a present.

If you have an extra glass vase around the house put them all in the vase.  You could put your favorites in the front to show them off or include other sentiments from the wedding like dried flowers, a program or extra party favors.  storing in a wooden pint basket or two and depending on how many cards you have would work also work.  You could decorate the outside of the basket with ribbon or wedding photos.

these ideas also work for storing birthday or holiday cards too!
happy preservation!  and stay cool, it's so hot in seattle.  xoxo - joat 

from the mail bag: margaritas

every party needs a good cocktail, they're more fun.  i'm going to a wedding shower on saturday and the hostess is looking for a cocktail to complement the mexican theme menu.  and what do you serve with tacos? margaritas of course!  the hostess of the shower sent me this email earlier in the week:

• Hi Jamie of all trades,  I would like make a pitcher (or more) of margaritas for my friend Kristi's wedding shower. Do you have a good recipe?

si, senorita!  i do.  i like this recipe from the barefoot contessa {of course.}  it makes a pitcher and isn't too sweet, like a lot of mixes are.

1 lime, cut in half

kosher salt

1/2 fresh squeezed lime juice {5 limes}

2 tbls fresh squeezed lemon juice {1 lemon}

1 cup triple sec or 3/4 cup cointreau

3 cups ice

1 cup white tequlia, i've always heard white tequlia is better.

to get the maximum juice from you limes, roll them around with the palm of your hand to loosen them up.

if you like margaritas with salt, rub the outside rim of six glasses with a cut lime and dip each glass lightly into a plate of kosher salt.

combine the lime juice, lemon juice, triple sec {or cointreau} and ice in a blender and puree until completely blended.  add the tequila and puree for 2 seconds more.  if the margs aren't sweet enough for you, all a tablespoon of sugar and puree 2 more seconds.  fill a serving pitcher with ice and pour margaritas over.  makes 6.

From the mail bag: computer tote

a friend of mine just became the proud owner of a new macbook.  yay mac!  she emailed me about suggestions for a laptop case or bag {you gotta protect your baby.}

• I just bought a new computer and I want a laptop case that is as cute and amazing as my new macbook. I'm kinda bored by the timbuktu stuff - it makes me feel like a bike messenger. and orla keily is too expensive.  Any suggestions?

here are my suggestions, all from etsy of course.

case #1 from janinekingdesign.  there were so many patterns so you can choose one you like best.




case #2 from roundtrip. I love how simple yet classy this case is.




case #3 from upstyle. another fun and vibrate option which also comes in other patterns too.


case #4 from indibe.  I really like this one, it has a built in mouse pad and nice wrist rests.  made from felt too!

happy shopping!

 

from the mail bag: vitamin storage

reader barrie recently asked me about a cool/cute way to store her vitamins:

• Q: i'm sick of looking at my boring vitamin bottles. i have LOTS to take, in all sizes, shapes and colors. i thought it would be more fun to take them if they were nicer to look at. any ideas?

her only requirements - needs a label on the bottle - can't be over $5 a container -  and big enough nozzle to fit big capsules. fair enough.  i did some creative thinking and came up with a two options.  one is to organize your dosage by day or organize by type and take one from each.  

to organize by day i liked these flexipak containers.  i thought these could be thrown in a bag but still are small enough to fit in your pocket.  i used my trusty label maker and marked the day of the week to avoid confusion.  and at 99 cents you'd be out less than $7 total.

the other would be organize by pill and take one from each container daily. these taller rectangle containers can hold big pills.  i use small circle labels from paper source so you know what's in each container.

   

or these small round jars? they could hold a lot. i again used a label from paper source.  i thought this sort of looked like something from dean and deluca. larger jars would be a more expensive option with the cutie labels, but you can use the labels on other things.

i also like these labels from ilee papergoods but i couldn't find a place to buy online.  i know they sell in some stores in seattle {packaging specialties} or maybe try a special request through her etsy if you're dying for them.  

hope this helps and keeps you healthy! - JOAT

from the mail bag : orange frosting & bottling

Here at jamieofalltrades I get asked for my advice on various topics.  Here are two recent questions from the mail bag:

• Q:  I want to make Halloween cupcakes for my office.  What's the best way I turn my frosting orange?
  •  A:  I've got two solutions.  One is buy orange food coloring gel from a kitchen specialty store.  Places like Williams Sonoma and Mrs. Cook's sell every color in the rainbow.  But if you're in a pinch or they are out {which happens around these color specific holidays} you can make your own.  The combination of red + yellow I recommend for one can of store bought frosting is 16 yellow drops to 3 1/2 red drops.  Use a knife to add half a drop.

   

• Q:  My boyfriends mom makes her own hand lotion and needs to find containers for it...preferably glass.  Do you know any store that sells supplies like this?
  •  A: I haven't been but NotMartha recommends Zenith Supplies.  They sell containers for all types of homemade lotions and potions.